Is it credible that such a development would not be mentioned in Syria’s media or in any of the daily reports from the Russian Ministry of Defense? It is well known that Russia is closely monitoring all activity on the ground and anyone operating inside Syrian territory without the Syrian government’s permission is a target for Russian and Syrian strikes.I question not only the veracity of such reports, but the purpose behind the timing of these strategic “leaks” in the midst of a highly successful Russian-led mission that has culminated in the current ceasefire campaign. Each day more opposition forces sign peace accords as the Syrian army, the Kurdish Defense forces, aided by Russian airstrikes, reclaim territory that had fallen to Da’esh over the past four years. And each day, more terrorists are either eliminated or driven back into Turkish territory.

We also know that the AKP are actively engaged in a brutal campaign of genocide of the Kurdish population in Turkey and have been shelling Kurdish positions inside Syria.

As for suggestions that the Kurdish Defense Forces have benefited from US strikes, consider this statement from PKK-PAJK fighter, Zelal Dersim:

“First of all, we know that the US, when they said they had bombed IS, what they were really bombing was desert. They know perfectly well where the central command posts of IS are located so there is no way of talking about mistakes here. There has never been any US attack against IS. All the terrorists of IS travel freely between Turkey (where there are some of their camps) and Syria. They go to the hospital in Turkey when they are wounded and travel to Syria again without any problem. Turkey also supports them.”

“Shaaban reaffirmed that the Kurdish protection units are Syrian, and the war against terrorism is being fought by all the Syrian people alongside the Syrian army, the popular defense groups and the Russian Air Force. It is Turkey who is trying to make an issue out of the Kurds’ involvement in fighting terrorism because it has a problem with that. We, on the contrary, don’t have a problem with that at all. What counts is Syria’s territorial integrity and the unity of its people.”

The Kurdish forces have admitted that they have internecine divisions, some serving secondary opposing political interests. But all Kurds are working in tandem to defeat their primary enemy and the enemy of humanity. This must never be forgotten in the midst of imperialist efforts to divide, confuse and destroy trust within alliances that comprise a united front against terrorism in Syria.